Designated for publication Collins v. Yellen, 17-20364, appeal from S.D. Tex. per curiam (joined by Owen, Jones, Smith, Elrod, Southwick, Higginson, Willett, Ho, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, Wilson, JJ.); Haynes, J., dissenting, joined by Stewart, Dennis, Graves, Costa, JJ.); separation of powers After partial vacatur and remand by U.S. Supreme Court of en banc decision at … More March 1-4, 2022, opinions
Designated for publication Landmark American Insurance Co. v. SCD Memorial Place II, L.L.C., 20-20389, appeal from S.D. Tex. Elrod, J. (Elrod, Willett, Engelhardt), insurance Reversing summary judgment in favor of insured on action regarding coverage of flood-related damage sustained during Hurricane Harvey, and rendering judgment in favor of insurer. The policy at issue here is … More February 3, 2022, opinions
Designated for publication U.S. v. Swenson, 20-20509, appeal from S.D. Tex. King, J. (King, Costa, Willett), criminal, sentencing, restitution, sufficiency of evidence Affirming conviction of mail fraud, sentence, and restitution award. The Court held that there was sufficient evidence to support the conviction on count of mail fraud (the jury had found defendant not guilty … More February 2, 2022, opinions
Designated for publication Williams v. Boeing Co., 18-31158, appeal from E.D. La. Southwick, J. (Southwick, Graves, Engelhardt), personal tort, multi-district litigation Reversing in part final judgment entered in mesothelioma case by district court in Louisiana after summary judgment by MDL court in Pennsylvania, and remanded for further proceedings. The Court held that the MDL district … More January 11-14, 2022, opinions
Designated for publication U.S. v. Meals, 20-40752, appeal from S.D. Tex. Jones, J. (Owen, Jones, Wilson), criminal, search and seizure Affirming conviction for production and possession of child pornography, on finding that Facebook did not act as a government agent when it sent a tip about the defendant’s Messenger exchange with a 15-year-old to the … More December 30, 2021, opinions
Designated for publication U.S. v. Greer, 19-11348, appeal from N.D. Tex. Stewart, J. (Higginbotham, Stewart, Wilson), criminal, sentencing, Armed Career Criminal Act On remand from U.S. Supreme Court, vacating sentence under the ACCA to 120 months on guilty-plea conviction of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm, and remanding for resentencing. In Borden … More December 20-29, 2021, opinions
Designated for publication Great American Insurance Co. v. Employers Mutual Casualty Co., 20-11113, appeal from N.D. Tex. Haynes, J. (King, Smith, Haynes), insurance Reversing summary judgment dismissal of plaintiff umbrella insurer’s declaratory judgment claim against defendant umbrella insurer in dispute regarding which umbrella insurer’s policy had priority coverage for a settlement agreement reached in an … More November 17, 2021, opinions
Designated for publication U.S. v. Martinez, 20-50984, appeal from W.D. Tex. Costa, J. (King, Costa, Ho), criminal, sentencing, supervised release Granting Anders motion to appointed defense counsel to withdraw as no non-frivolous grounds for appeal exist, but specifically addressing why there is not a non-frivolous argument that the orally pronounced terms of supervised release did … More October 20, 2021, opinions
Designated for publication Goldring v. U.S., 20-30723, appeal from E.D. La. Engelhardt, J. (Jones, Southwick, Engelhardt), tax Affirming in part and reversing in part district court’s summary judgment in favor of government dismissing taxpayers’ refund claims in their entirety. In separate litigation, one of the taxpayers had prevailed in a suit to have her stock … More October 1-4, 2021 opinions
Designated for publication Adams v. All Coast, L.L.C., 19-30907, appeal from W.D. La. per curiam (Smith, Clement, Oldham), Fair Labor Standards Act, maritime law Denying petition for en banc rehearing (Judges Jones and Elrod voting for rehearing; Chief Judge Owen and Judges Smith, Stewart, Dennis, Southwick, Haynes, Graves, Higginson, Costa, Willett, Ho, Duncan, Engelhardt, Oldham, … More September 30, 2021 opinions
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